Synonyms

Related Molecules in the Encyclopedia

Historical Background

Bub1 was originally discovered as a gene required for cell cycle arrest during mitosis in response to the microtubule depolymerizing drug benzimidazole in the model organism Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Hoyt et al. 1991). Mutant yeast were unable to arrest and inhibit the budding process at the end of mitosis, a marker for cell cycle progression, hence the name Budding Uninhibited by Benzimidazole 1 (BUB1). Through its capacity to contribute to mitotic arrest, BUB1 functions as an integral component of the spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC), a surveillance mechanism that delays mitotic progression until all kinetochores are properly attached to microtubules, and aligned at the spindle equator in metaphase. Since its original discovery in budding yeast, a SAC function for BUB1 has been verified in all model organisms studied to date (reviewed in (Elowe 2011...